We had to put Gunther to sleep today. He had too many illnesses and was in too much pain to suffer another day. He was a great dog the entire time he was with us. To Riley and Holden, Gunther always existed. To DJ, it was the second dog that had to be put down. We all went to the shelter as a family to see him off. It was sad but he is no longer in pain. Originally, we were going to walk the kennels to look for our next family member, but we changed our minds after we said goodbye to Gunther. It just didn't seem right.
DJ (aka Boswell) made a video as a tribute to the opening scene in Apocalypse Now. It's funny and weird at the same time. I think we all have the same sense of humor. DJ is trying to submit it to the Brea Film Festival for consideration.
Holden is in the 4th grade and the first trimester grades just came out. I was shocked to see that Holden earned an A grade in every subject. I sometimes ask him about his homework and occasionally help him with it but it's rare. When he handed me the sealed envelope I expected to see the normal mix of very good and very bad that you would see in a kid with ADHD. However, somehow Holden managed to excel in every subject. For each A he earns $10 so I had to give him $50 on Friday. Money well spent.
Holden had his end of season football party at a club house in Brea. This video shows Holden receiving his participation award and shaking hands with the coaches. The season was a losing season and Holden didn't get enough action, but the coaches and team mom were great. We are hoping that next year Holden will be in a division that is more appropriate to his size. Holden weighs about 69 lbs and due to strange circumstances was moved up a division to play against players over 100 lbs. He never complained and wants to play again.
Riley's soccer season ended yesterday. Her team, the Galaxy, played a city tournament championship and lost two games and that was that. Riley and her teammates were still happy though. The desire to win is not that strong at this age. Parents want the win more, it seems. Riley spent most of the season as goal keeper and only recently started playing midfield at her own request. Riley says she will go on to play in All Stars since she still gets a lot of enjoyment out of playing soccer.
In the photo, the Red Bulls (the team that beat the Galaxy in the opening game) is sitting behind them.
DJ was the first new driver at the Fullerton DMV this morning so now he gets to drive his new Camry alone. I thought he was going to ace the test but he ended up one point away from failing. I attribute it to nerves and perhaps overconfidence because he is a good driver for his age.
Riley had her first high school gig as a band member last Friday night. The Brea Junior High band was invited to play with the big kids during a real Varsity game. Here is a short video. Riley is in the center.
Holden's football team, the Brea Wildcats, finally won their first game last Saturday 7-6. This was their victory cheer. You can't see Holden well but he is number 9.
Riley and I went on a long ride with her friend Tessa and Tessa's dad, Brian. First we went to an Orange County motorcyle culture exhibit at a museum. Then we rode to Silverado in the rural center of the OC. We had a burger at Cook's Corner and took streets home. It was a beautiful ride.
Holden was honored tonight at a ceremony following football practice. Pop Warner recognizes academic achievement in its players. Holden was one of three kids in his division to achieve Platinum status due to his excellent grades despite playing football nearly every school night.
At Toyota we had a contest as part of Camry's 30th Anniversary. Hundreds of small prizes like USB Chargers were given away and I didn't win any of them. Every day we had to log in to a special web site and answer triva questions about 1983 or about the Camry. Each question answered correctly earned you a token - an electronic raffle ticket. I answered a bunch correctly throughout the month, but not all. In early September, I received a phone call from the Camry Product Manager to inform me that I won the grand prize - a one year lease of a brand new 2014 Camry SE.
Since I need to drive my Prius in order to use the carpool lane when commuting, DJ will be the primary driver of the new Camry. He turns 16 in October.
The head of Toyota Automotive for Toyota Motor Sales presented me with a symbolic key at a recent announcement of new models.
Holden had his first scrimmage as a Junior Peewee Brea Wildcat. This is Holden with his friend and teammate Brock Labelle. Next Saturday is the first game that counts. Holden had two tackles and Brock had a 32 yard run in the scrimmage that followed this picture.
The burrito is as big as Holden's forearm. Bigger, actually. This is a breakfast burrito from Molcasalsa, a 24 hour Mexican place near our house. We started going here for breakfast a few years ago and now it's a tradition to have breakfast here once per week.
I always get the Machaca Burritto. It's filled with shredded beef, eggs, tomatoes, onions and bell peppers. DJ gets the chorizo burrito which only contains chorizo and eggs -- often more chorizo than egg. Riley and Holden share a bacon burrito which has thick chunks of bacon, eggs and cheese. Notice they don't put potatoes or beans in their giant breakfast burritos. This isn't just an excellent burrito but also a steal at $3.25 plus tax.
DJ has done a little research on the restaurant and found that they have several locations but all are family owned, sort of like In-n-Out. Their consistency is probably due to the fact that they don't franchise - like In-n-Out doesn't franchise. They also appear to pay their people well. I only say that because the workers seem to be very friendly and happy, with low turnover, and they drive late model vehicles. They always recognize us and if a member of the family is missing, they ask where he or she is.
One of the workers has nine fingers so that's how we refer to him. He is the friendliest and has seen DJ go from a half-a-burrito-eater to the guy that rides his skateboard there from his mom's house in La Habra, to the guy that drives up to the window himself. Part of what makes the burritos there so good is the tortillas they use (almost translucent), the fresh ingredients, the friendly staff and tradition. It's something we all look forward to just about every weekend.
The Pantry in downtown LA has been open continuously since 1924 and never without a customer. They do breakfasts better than anything else. Riley and I shared a bacon omellette, sourdough grilled bread, potatoes and biscuits with gravy. And cole slaw of course. So good.
It occurred to Riley that we entered Canada on July 1, Canada Day, and entered the USA on July 4, Independence Day.
After the suspension bridge, we spent some more time with Greg. He took us to Spanish Beach where his friends were doing a barbecue. DJ and I pumped up the inflatable kayak and we paddled around in the bay. It got dark, and the kids were pooped, so we ate some frozen burgers I had in the RV fridge and called it a night.
The next day we started back for the US. The border crossing went fine even though I only had half our passports. We skipped Seattle and instead chose to stop in Rochester, Washington to spend the night. I saw a sign for a casino with RV parking. On the way to the casino, as we entered Indian land, we saw about 40 fireworks stands and people were lighting them off already.
The boys had been bugging me to buy fireworks. They bought some at the Columbia River stop on the way up and I let them light off three each in the fire pit on the river. They wanted more now that they saw the stands with the real fireworks. I asked around and it turns out that on Indian land anything goes. That's why they can sell and light off real fireworks whenever they want. In fact, that night, there was going to be a fireworks show at the Indian city center and all the attendees would be lighting off their own fireworks. I heard it can get crazy.
Against my better judgment, I pulled into the Indian city center area in my RV and the kids could already see people lighting off fireworks everywhere even though it wasn't dusk yet. The kids started getting excited. I poured a drink and went on the roof of the RV where I could watch all three of kids at once. I met a woman who comes there every year with her kids. She said it gets crazy but that's what makes it great. DJ and I met another group in the same parking lot who also come every year. He opened the back of his Scion and showed me what he says is $4,000 of fireworks.
DJ made a Youtube of some of the show on the ground. It did get crazy, but no one was hurt. DJ used the RV's fire extinguisher to put out a brush fire. Some of the people were doing stupid things, but it wasn't too bad.
Riley and Holden got to be part of the action once it calmed down a bit.
The next we drove all the way to Crescent City, California to see our friend and former housemate, Arielle. Unfortunely, she works graveyards at Home Depot so we spent the night in the Home Depot parking lot. I'm getting used to saving money on RV parks and just sleeping wherever we want. In the morning, Arielle took us to her favorite beach in Crescent City to see the tide pools, driftwood and baby jellyfish. Holden headed straight for the water, of course.
We drove all the way from Crescent City to Brea after that. We arrived Sunday, slept for a bit, and unloaded the RV.
The trip ended up being a great success and a trip we will all remember forever.
The concept of travelling North with a goal of reaching Canada eventually, but otherwise with no real itinerary, has (so far) worked out fine.
Our first night was in Pismo Beach. You should have seen the kids' faces when they first saw the dunes. It was dusk and the fine sand seemed to stretch on forever.
The next night we stayed in Mountain View at Uncle Paul and Aunt Shu's house. Paul made hamburgers and salmon burgers for dinner and the next morning Shu made waffles while Paul juiced home grown vegetables. The kids got to play with little Sage. It was great.
The third night we made it all the way to Ashland, Oregon where my Dad and Cindy had just arrived for a family reunion and wedding. We got to see all the people we haven't seen since the last reunion seven years ago. We spent the last day geocaching (a treasure hunt) with relatives.
The fourth night we spent at Seven Feathers Casino RV Resort. I was hoping to get some poker in, but their poker room was being renovated. The kids always enjoy casinos so we took the free shuttle from the RV park to the casino and had dinner and ice cream while monitoring the Keno board for our ages. The RV Resort is beautiful and caters to people travelling through. The shuttle picks you up at your rv site and takes you wherever you want to go. The spotless showers were great and each bathroom has its own door and shower.
The fifth night we stayed at an RV Park on the Columbia River in Washington.
They had a giant chess set and before they saw the river, DJ and Riley started up a grueling, long game that DJ eventually won. Holden however had no problem playing in the chilly Columbia.
On the way to Canada we had to stop in Seattle to visit the very first Starbucks.
The sixth night we made it to Canada and stayed in the only RV park in Vancouver. $70 a night! We got wise after that and parked in front of Greg Stewart's Yaletown condo. Greg Stewart is my Grammy and Leo award winning cousin who used to be a lot older than me but now we are both in our forties. His mum, Enola, is my mom's aunt. So that makes Enola my kids' Great Great Aunt.
We enjoyed taking the Skytrain to the Waterfront in Vancouver to see the fireworks show celebrating Canada Day. On the way back, after midnight, we were supposed to change trains so I told the kids to get ready but I was too slow. Riley and Holden exited the train and left DJ and me behind. The doors closed and a security guard had one arm around each kid and pantomimed to me that I should return at the next stop. That's what I did and it turned into a non-event. There goes my dad of the year award once again!
We drove up to local Vancouver attraction which is a suspension bridge in the forest above Vancouver. Here I am making a face. Huong has been bugging me for a self portrait because I only post pictures of the kids.
The suspension bridge moves a lot so you really get the strange feeling of being unsafe which makes it all worthwhile. Riley doesn't look happy here but she is.
The bridge can support two 747's, in case you were wondering. How they would get the airplanes in the middle of the forest, I don't know. But if they can, the ropes can hold them.
We didn't realize it right away, but DJ's shirt exactly matches the shirts worn by the workers at the suspension bridge. During our hikes around the various attractions DJ sometimes told visitors what to do just for fun. He even got a button somehow to make himself look official.
That's all for now. Be sure to check out DJ and Riley's Instagram feeds for more interesting pictures.
Holden got to fly in a flight simulator at a birthday party. I thought it was cool enough that I signed up for a 90 minute combat experience in a fighter jet simulator this coming Wednesday.
Riley and these other smart girls graduated Fanning last Friday. These are her best school friends Noellani and Maya. Riley earned straight A's again from my former 6th grade teacher, Ms. Ladebauche, who retires this year.
In the Fall, all three Borklund kids will be in different Brea schools.
DJ had chest pains when he exerted himself - so bad that it would bring him to his knees. I initially tried to get him seen at Kaiser in Brea but they turned him amd his mom away (!) because we had no appointment so I picked him up and took him to the ER thirty minutes away. They did an EKG and chest x-ray and it turns out it is not serious. It will go away after taking prescription Motrin for a few days. He is fine.
We saw Man Of Steel today hoping for the best. Two and a half hours later, we were not impressed. DJ made this Instagram to show how he feels. You can see DJ's entire Instagram collection here (NSFW).
We had a family picture day last weekend. In the typical cost concious and rushed way I do things, I bought a Groupon for a Target photo studio, had all the kids wear jeans, arrived at Target thirty minutes early, bought polos for everyone and took pictures. We were out of there in under an hour.
For posterity purposes, these are the ages on Picture Day: DJ (15), Riley (11) and Holden (9).
This picture is one of those shots someone took in between the posed shots that actually shows the laughter in a way the posed shots don't.
Houng had a birthday last Saturday and we invited her sister, Marion and her husband, Michael, along with their two boys, Michael and Darwin. I cooked most of the food and made some experimental cocktails. The kids had friends over as well, and our other friends Chris and Vicky brought an ice cream cake.
Having Huong's relatives over was kind of a big deal, so I am glad it went well.
Initially, when DJ showed me this I shrugged. I must have been in the the middle of something. He sometimes picks the most inopportune (look it up, DJ) times to show me stuff. But now I like it, so I'm posting it. I think DJ may want to go into film. He loves movies, is familiar with the great directors, remembers everything he sees, and can recite scenes from his favorite movies verbatim.
DJ and Lexi went to a Sadie Hawkins Dance which had a sports theme. I had to buy DJ one of those expensive authentic jerseys but I got it big enough so that I could wear it too.
Saw Chris Botti and his amazing band at Pechanga. I thought it would be fake jazz like Kenny G but it was true jazz with musicians that basically play better than Chris himself. I need to look up these artists and find their individual works. Also I need Chris's latest album, Impressions.
Chris will be at Honda Center soon but that venue is too big for me and echoey. We had excellent seats at Pechanga with decent sound quality.
Look at the photo I snapped to get an idea of how close we were.
Riley, 11, didn't dress up for her class picture either. Like the other two kids, she is happy and smart. Riley is extra smart, though, getting straight As and practicing Algebra on web sites just to pass the time. She asked me about Interest=Rate x Principal x Time and I told her about how people borrow and invest. She got it right away. Good girl, Riley!
Holden didn't dress up for his class picture, but that's Holden. He is a handsome chap in whatever he is wearing that day. Holden will be starting football soon. In the mean time he keeps busy by entertaining his brother and sister (that's the nice way of putting it). Always smiling, Holden is doing well in school and enjoys puzzles, skateboarding, and basketball.
DJ, Riley, Holden and I took a trip to the Grand Canyon for Spring Break 2013.
On the way, we spent the night at a great little RV park in Needles. I spotted a poker game in the clubhouse and while the kids played pool, I tripled up my chips and walked away with $10 profit. It was a $5 buy in.
We stayed at the Mather Campground in Grand Canyon Village. A shuttle bus took us to the camp store and all the points on the rim. It was easy to spot elk and deer when travelling around the south rim because they are protected and not afraid of people at all.
On the second day, we were listening to a talk about geology from a Ranger when dark clouds rolled in and it started to snow. It took about 5 minutes for it to start coming down really hard - fine hail and sleet blowing directly in your face. I didn't bring snow clothes for anyone, but Riley and I had good jackets. DJ and Holden were not so fortunate. We had to walk to the shuttle, take the shuttle to our campground and then walk a quarter mile uphill to our campground. That's where the picture from the last post came from.
We decided to leave a day early because it started to snow again and I didn't want to get snowed in at camp. We drove to Kingman, Arizona and spent the night in a parking lot. The next day we took Route 66 to Oatman AZ and then Laughlin NV. That stretch of Route 66 is pretty.
All in all, the kids had a great time. DJ got to play pyro with the campfire, Riley got to hike with me in the snow and Holden liked walking from point to point on the rim, climbing on everything.
We got one or two good looks at the Grand Canyon and then the dark clouds rolled in. We had walked to the rim so we had to walk back to camp in blizzard conditions. Holden was not happy but we are all fine playing games and watching movies while we wait out the storm.
